InterContinental Fiji Golf Resort & Spa

This place is a very expensive version of the Butlin's holiday camp for children. My first review was taken down because they did not want me to criticise the staff or management, so I will simply state facts - you decide. The check-in involves bag offload with little help then a walk to a bar stall that serves up local hooch pretending to be gin, it is not any gin that I have ever tasted ever. Then a LONG walk along a massive walkway to reception where WE STAND and THEY SIT, or you can sit on VERY low chairs below the person doing the check in whilst they look down on you - and it takes AGES. Then you have a LONG walk BACK the way you came to the bags which have not moved, wait for a buggy to be found and can then be taken to your room - who thought that would be a good idea ? No joke, I must have walked 100m after arriving before being taken to the room. So we get to the room, no drinking water, so being tired from travel I wanted to take a bath, not an unreasonable expectation ? The bath would not fill, the plug was corroded and would not seal, so the water just leaked out. I call maintenance, they come and tip the bath to its side and take it to pieces and then go away. Perhaps an hour later, I call and ask what is happening, the come back with a new plug fitting and start to fix the bath. I decide to instead go to the pool. It is far too cold to enjoy a swim and far colder than the sea. This time of year in Fiji the air is 22 degrees, the pool needs to heated. When we got back and wanted to try and take a bath again, there was no hot water, apparently they had switched-off the hot water to the whole building by mistake when doing the bath. They said wait 15 minutes, nope that did not work, so I call again, they come back and say it should actually take an hour to heat up. So we waited and finally had a bath - joy. So we go to the main "restaurant" which is like a noisy cafeteria and we are early for our booking, so I ask for a menu whilst waiting and instead of handing me one, they point to a place on the other side of the restaurant where I can get one (this is supposed to be a 5 star resort remember). So we get seated and the waitress arrives to take our order, so we order two of the meals and wait. The waitress is working on her tablet computer, so I wait. Then she asks for the order again, so I order two of the meals and she starts trying to work the tablet and we wait. Then she asks for the order a third time. So I ask if she could get someone who knows what they are doing, I ask twice as she does not seems to understand the request. Two of my party of five gave up waiting for food and left. Another lady arrives and takes our order immediately and correctly. I notice that the table of 10/12 people next to us, they are using pen and paper to take the order, perhaps they know this "tablet" problem? When we finished our meal, I went to the little rostrum in the centre of the cafeteria to complain but they did not know what what maître d' was, so I asked for a manager and they said to tell him, so I did, how bad the service was and he just stared at me, so I left. I was halfway back to the room and discovered that I was being pursued two men, one very large like a bouncer. They said I had not signed my bill, I told him they knew the room number and feeling threatened, I told him how bad their service was. Perhaps this was the manager, he did not introduce himself. The next day, we decide to go to the pool - far too cold to swim, even the kids were jumping out shivering. So I decided to buy an ice cream at the little shop by the pool. The FIVE people who run the ice cream stall sell cones that they make on site, except they RAN OUT - you had one job - it took all FIVE of them to fail to do one job. So I come back an hour later when they had made some more. You have to wonder if they were not expecting to sell ice creams that day ? In Fiji, by a pool. Whilst we were at the pool, the resort manager came to apologise but instead he spoke not to me, but someone else in our group and said how the STAFF were upset that I complained - it was the system of the intercontinental that is causing the very slow order taking but he wanted to blame my expectations of being able to order and eat at the restaurant as being at fault. I ordered a pina-colada and guess what, the SAME taste of Irish Potcheen or Saudi Sidiqi not Gin or Rum. It seems they have their own "spirit" that they use, no matter whether you order gin or rum. Perhaps the manager can go "undercover boss" and expose what is going on ? The next night the restaurants were either having events like a wedding or booked out out, so there is only one we could use, the one that does not do children, so we had the child booked into the kids thing and go to the no kids restaurant. It has all the pretence of 5 star but without the service, we literally had to look for someone to tell them we had arrived and it was mostly empty. This is where I got to see what was going on with the tablet computers because the waitress crouched down to my height (I am sitting at this point) so I could see her long nailed finger trying to hit the tiny boxes on the screen - when she was tapping the order, she had to bend her finger sideways and even then it selects the thing next to the one she is trying to select. I watched her try over and over and the she had to press delete and try again. Surely the management know this is a problem ? Meanwhile we wait and wait - remember, we came here to eat! Perhaps since the manager's manager Lachlan Walker had my review removed, I will add some more detail. This room the wardrobe doors do not close, they were not aligned, there was a vestige of an early era phone socket in the toilet that had come unscrewed and was hanging loose. The morning cafe has a cereal section that has no spoons and no spoons on the tables, so I had to ask staff and they were hidden on top of another cabinet under a cloth on the other side of the restaurant - who knew - the next day there had moved again to another hiding place - perhaps this is a game of hide and seek they like to play ? The resort looks like it has had a hard time, with lots of cracked pavings and compared to the Sofitel we had stayed at earlier in the week, it was chalk and cheese - the Sofitel was brilliant - the check in at the Sofitel was literally the best I have ever had in 50 years of travel. I wrote to the manager and had no reply, but I suggested he go an stay at the Sofitel and see how entirely different the staff are compared to how he runs his Intercontinental noisy holiday camp. I hope Tripadvisor allow the review this time, because it is simple facts, but I do expect the same manager Lachlan Walker to now suggest that my expectations should be lower in Fiji because of where it is, and it is not nice to complain to staff. So if that is the case Lachlan, perhaps you could stop changing 5 star prices.

Dear Ravi & the entire team at InterContinental Fiji, We have just returned home from our first-ever trip to Fiji and wow… what can I say - we absolutely LOVED everything about our stay! From the moment we arrived, the warmth and genuine friendliness of your team was something really special. So many took the time to remember us, continue conversations from one day to the next and genuinely get to know us - something that can be hard to achieve in a resort of this size, but makes such a difference to the guest experience. My mum and I celebrated our birthdays while there (just one day apart!), so there were plenty of unexpected cakes, special birthday songs and beautiful little moments created by the team. We definitely felt the Fiji love! ❤️ We travelled as a family of three and had two One-Bedroom Suites with Club InterContinental access, and it was perfect. Tucked away in Bures 3812 & 3923, towards the back of the resort, it felt like our own peaceful oasis. We also loved the buggies - always easy to catch and another opportunity for a friendly chat with the team. Club InterContinental was a highlight. Daily cocktails and canapés quickly became part of the holiday routine 🍹, and we loved the dining options across the resort. Navo, Sanasana, Kama Lounge and Club InterContinental all offered something different, with fantastic variety throughout our nine-night stay. What we particularly loved was that you can make the holiday whatever you want it to be - beautiful spaces for complete rest and relaxation, separate adult and family areas, incredible dining and plenty to do when you feel like being active. And active we were! We ventured out for ATV quad biking with Go Dirty Tours and zip-lining with Zip Fiji - both booked through Rosie Holidays at the resort. Kalesi was fantastic helping us organise everything, and both tours were brilliant experiences with equally wonderful teams. Highly recommend both! We also couldn't come to Fiji without playing Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course - in fact, having such an incredible course right on the doorstep was one of the big deciding factors in choosing where we stayed. We squeezed in two rounds and what amazing experiences they were! ⛳️ The course is spectacular, with incredible ocean and valley views around almost every corner. Standing on the 4th beside the beach and looking out from the elevated 6th tee across the valley were definite highlights. There were some great shots, some very questionable ones 🤣, but when the golf wasn't cooperating, the scenery certainly was! For a very new golfer, playing two rounds at Natadola Bay was pretty special and another absolute highlight of our holiday. I work in hotels and hospitality in Australia, so I probably notice the little details and guest interactions more than most - and Australian hospitality businesses could learn a lot from the genuine warmth of your team. Beautiful resorts can be built anywhere, but it is the people who create the memories and make guests want to return. Your team does that exceptionally well. A huge VINAKA VAKALEVU to everyone who made our nine nights so special, with an extra special shout-out to Iliapo, Sela and Samu. Thank you for the laughs, conversations and genuine interest you showed every time we crossed paths. You are wonderful ambassadors for the resort and Fijian hospitality. Nine nights somehow still wasn't enough! We ran out of time to do everything we wanted, which I think is the perfect excuse to come back. Fiji, you definitely have a piece of our hearts now. 🇫🇯❤️

We received superb service, Our favourite staff was Alesi, who waited on our table at the Toba grill. It was such a wonderful experience. Thank you Alesi!

We visited the Kama bar a number of times. The service and staff there are amazing! Armani, Eloise, Melanie and Vani were extra helpful. The cocktails were delicious. The 4 mentioned staff members were helpful, professional and friendly. The atmostphere at the Kama bar is so relaxing. The music is fantastic. We have been coming to the bar most nights and we love it. We highly recommend you go to the Kama bar. You won't regret it. Theresa, Joanne, Diane and Maryanne.

Amazing location, and a beautiful spread out property! The staff is superb- very friendly, courteous and helpful. Vinaka